Down With Wilco

The Minus 5, Gino Vannelli | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 25, 2003)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Yep Roc Records
• ASIN: B00007L6HX
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #39,982 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #81 in Music > Alternative Rock > Indie & Lo-Fi > Chamber Pop

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Down with Wilco, while a stellar album in its own right, also sounds like a creative counterpart to Wilco's warped and wonderful Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. It makes sense, since all four current members of Wilco contribute, and Down with Wilco was recorded around the same time (and was met with the same resistance from the music industry) as Foxtrot. This one is tighter and more conventional, as songs like "Where Will You Go?" and "The Family Gardener" threaten to fly off into space but never actually do. Of course, it also features Scott McCaughey (of Young Fresh Fellows) and R.E.M.'s Peter Buck, and the playful feel of past Minus 5 efforts such as Old Liquidator. The group's strange yet familiar cacophonies borrow the best parts of Beach Boys and Beatles. Credit Minus 5 with another lovely genre-bending collection. --Matthew Cooke

Los Angeles Times

These are gorgeously written, infectious, perfectly interpreted takes on the roots of the best ’60s pop.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Likeable Pop, February 28, 2003

By 

Tim Hewitt (Columbia, SC USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Down With Wilco (Audio CD)

This is my first experience with Minus 5, and I'm not exactly sure what I came expecting. I was attracted to it by a description I'd read elsewhere of this CD's "lush, orchestral country-rock tunes." There's certainly a lush sound here, and a lot of orchestral touches, but I don't hear so much of the country-rock (or alt-country, etc.) sound as echoes of the Sgt. Pepper-era Beatles sound. Anyone who liked Wilco's "Yankee Hotel Foxtrot" will certainly feel right at home with this CD. Scott McCaughey does most of the vocals, with Jeff Tweedy doing the honors on "The Family Gardener." All of the tunes are pleasant and very listenable, but overall the entire set is much more subdued and low-key where I had hopes of more up tempo jangly guitar. As is, "Down With Wilco" is a pleasant surprise. Not what I expected, but a good performace in it's own right.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Who cares if they sound like the Beatles...This is Good!, March 20, 2003

By 

"sbrooks76" (Newark, De United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Down With Wilco (Audio CD)

It seems that if a band today sounds like another band they can be dismissed. This is a philosophy for elitists and shut-ins! This album is good. Sure they are emulating the Beatles and the Beach Boys, but it is quite obvious as the lyrics are at times and self-mocking in acknowledgment. This album has a lot more than borrowed styles. The melodies are catchy, along with the lyrics. Despite its almost simultaneous recording with Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, Down With Wilco is quite different. Some of the songs recall each other, but that is because they are very good songs.
What is fun about this album is that at times it is a bit ridiculous but quite catchy. Its quirkiness is resilient and keeps you coming back for more to grasp and relive those awkward moments. This album good, buy now..

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fun and Addictive, March 17, 2005

By 

Nathaniel C. Bottorff (Tallahassee, FL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Down With Wilco (Audio CD)

This album didn't give it all up on the first few listens. I got if about six months ago (on the same day I bought Wilco's A Ghost is Born, which I am pretty disapointed in overall), and as often happens with some of my favorite albums, it wasn't until later that I popped it in and couldn't take it out of the CD player. Just listening to it once or twice is not enough to "get it." Fun lyrics trapped in sad songs, and sad lyrics wrapped in poppy gems.

Not for those that want an easy listen.